The left part of the screen of my parent’s Samsung TV have seriously blackened recently, so they are thinking of buying a new TV. We probably bought this like 6 years ago maybe, but I absolutely do NOT want to buy a Samsung again (6 years is just planned obsolescence reliability + their OS didn’t let me remove the bloatware in any way or shape of form)

Which brand has been the most reliable for you, and also have you been able to remove the bloatware from your TV via dev mode or with a different method?

    • JoshuaFalken@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      A few of the larger electronics retailers here have open box sections on their websites. I called several smaller ones, but due to their size they either didn’t have model units at all or only had one or two. One place I went to found they had some returned televisions in the back that they’d never put back on the sales floor, but being effectively brand new they only offered a ten percent reduction.

      The website listings were ideal because as made it less arduous to compare specifications. In my case I was rather particular about certain technical details, so it might be simpler for someone that cares less about colour uniformity or input lag for example.

      That said, I’ve now remembered that once I’d narrowed it down from a couple dozen options to three televisions, the deciding factor was nothing technical but instead it was the only user interface factor that I do see: it turns on and off with an animation reminiscent of old tube television. I’m not looking forward to replacing it because I find this power on visual so funny with a modern screen.

      It might be handy for you to check out rtings accelerated longevity tests and see if you can find those models at a discount. I make use of their tests pretty often.